Keeping up with the times key to successful aging

Whether it's listening to an iPod, playing video games or keeping up with the news, staying in tune with the times may help people live to 100.

That's some of the advice from a poll of elderly people who were questioned about the secrets of longevity.

Spirituality, a healthy diet, no smoking and being happy were also high of the list of what is important for a long life.

"They very much paid attention to both technology and current events," Dr John Mach, the head of Evercare which conducted the poll, said about the elderly respondents.

Evercare, which provides care coordination programs for the elderly and disabled, surveyed 100 people who were 99 years and older.

"It is all about successful aging and trying to understand what are the key drivers for successful aging," he added in an interview.

Centenarians do not embrace technology as much as middle aged people or younger groups, but Mach said he was surprised by the extent to which they had been exposed to it.
More than 30 percent of the elderly questioned in the poll said they had watched reality television shows, 24 percent had bought CDs and 15 percent had played video games.

Six percent had used the internet and four percent had listened to music on an iPod.

"Certainly we know that social interactions make a difference over a lifetime, so maintaining those social interactions ... in emails, the Internet and being able to converse about current events, that does contribute to the overall social wellbeing of people which we know contributes to successful aging," Mach added.

Better healthcare, vaccinations, improvements in water supplies and a drop in child mortality have contributed to the soaring ranks of centenarians.

They are thought to be the fastest growing segment of the population in the United States and other industrial countries.

There are nearly 80,000 centenarians living in the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The number is expected to soar to 580,000 by 2040.

Spirituality was also a consistent theme in the survey, according to Mach. When the elderly respondents were asked who they admired or trusted most, 34 percent named their priest, rabbi or preacher.

The majority of those questioned said they either lived at home alone or with a spouse. Thirty-four percent said they would choose a better memory over having fewer aches and pains or losing weight.

Most of them had never smoked. Of those who did, 21 percent managed to kick the habit. Nearly 40 percent said they think they eat a better diet today than they did 50 years ago.
Among the greatest medical achievements during their lifetime, the centenarians ranked heart bypass surgery, pacemakers and cancer treatments on the top of the list.

Source: Reuters